A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 03 eBook

Columbus, whom the Spaniards call Colon, to adapt
his name to their language, was born in Genoa, his
fathers name being Dominick. As to the original
of his family, some derive it from Placentia, others
from Cucureo, a town on the coast near that city,
others from the lords of the castle of Cucaro, in
Montferrat, near Alexandria de la Pagla. In 940,
the Emperor Otho II. confirmed to the brothers and
earls, Peter, John, and Alexander Columbus, the real
and feudal estates which they possessed in the liberties
of the cities of Aqui, Savona, Asti, Montferrat, Turin,
Vercelli, Parma, Cremona, and Bergamo, with all the
rest they held in Italy. By other records, it
appears that the Columbi of Cucaro, Cucureo, and Placentia,
were the same; and that the before-mentioned emperor
granted, in the same year 940, to the same three brothers,
the castles of Cucaro, Cowzana, Rosignano, and others,
with the fourth part of Bistagno, which belonged to
the empire. This sufficiently demonstrates the
antiquity and importance of the family. When
very young, Christopher Columbus came into Spain,
or Portugal rather, to seek his fortune like other
men. He there married Donna Philippa Moniz de
Perestrello, by whom he had one son, Don James Columbus;
and afterwards, by a second wife, Donna Beatrix Henriquez
of the city of Cordova, he had another son, Don Ferdinand
Columbus, a gentleman excellently qualified and well
learned.

Being entirely convinced that there were new lands
to discover, which he had been long revolving in his
mind, he at length determined to attempt carrying
his design into execution; but knowing that such an
undertaking was fit only for some sovereign prince
or state, he made the proposal, in the first place,
to the republic of Genoa, where it was looked upon
as a chimera. He then communicated his design
to John II. of Portugal, who gave him a favourable
hearing, but was so much occupied with the discoveries
along the western coast of Africa, that he was unwilling
to engage in another enterprize of so much importance.
King John, however, referred the matter to three persons
on whom he placed great reliance in matters relating
to cosmography and discovery; one of these was Don
James Ortez, bishop of Ceuta who was a Spaniard, born
at Calzadilla in the commandary of St Jago, and commonly
called the Doctor Calzadilla; the other two were Roderick
and Joseph, two Jewish physicians. These persons
pretended to consider the design of Columbus as wild
and impracticable; yet, after hearing his reasonings,
and an account of the course he proposed to steer,
they advised the king to send out a caravel upon the
discovery, giving out that it was destined for Cabo
Verde. This was done accordingly, and the vessel
went many leagues to the westwards; but, encountering
severe storms, it returned without effecting any discovery,
and holding out the notions of Columbus to ridicule.
He, not ignorant of this underhand dealing, was much
offended, and his wife being dead, he took a great